The Ghost and Mrs. Muir has been a novel (1945), a movie (1947), and a TV series (1968-1970).
Don Knotts’ The Ghost and Mr. Chicken (1966) inspired a short-lived craze for yelling out “Attaboy, (name)” during speeches and other situations. This came from a running gag used in this film. According to Knotts’ autobiography, the off-screen voice yelling, “Attaboy, Luther!” in the film belongs to screenwriter Everett Greenbaum.
Norman Greenbaum, an observant Jew from Malden, MA who attended Hebrew schools, is best known for his guitar-heavy song “Spirit in the Sky”, in which he claims he’s got a friend in Jesus. Under the name Dr. West’s Medicine Show and Junk Band, he recorded the novelty hit “The Eggplant That Ate Chicago”.
In one episode of Murphy Brown, Murphy takes Miles out shopping for a new suit. The salesman looks at Miles, pulls out a purple suit and proudly announces, “I see you in eggplant!”
Eggplant is outside Miles’ comfort zone.
Miles Standish was a passenger on the Mayflower and was hired by the colonists to be a military advisor for Plymouth Colony. In one of the first attacks by Native Americans against the colonists looking for a place to settle, an incident called The First Encounter, Standish led the settlers calmly and encouraged them to not fire their muskets unnecessarily. This First Encounter took place in present-day Eastham, MA.
Approximately 45,000 British colonists fled the 13 colonies for the British colonies of Quebec and Nova Scotia, remaining loyal to the King.
A resident of Halifax, Nova Scotia is called a Haligonian.
While Lower Louisiana had been settled by French colonists since the late 17th century, the Cajuns trace their roots to the influx of Acadian settlers after the Great Expulsion from their homeland during the French and English hostilities prior to the Seven Years’ War . The Acadia region to which modern Cajuns trace their origin consisted largely of what are now Nova Scotia and the other Maritime provinces, plus parts of eastern Quebec and northern Maine. Since their establishment in Louisiana the Cajuns have developed their own dialect, Cajun French, and developed a vibrant culture including folkways, music, and cuisine. The Acadiana region is heavily associated with them.
The Acadians in Nova Scotia have retained some anachronisms in their dialect, such as saying “Je ne suis point” instead of “Je ne suis pas”, a construction which was used in Molière’s time.
The Moliere Awards are considered the highest honour in French theatre.The award was created by Georges Cravenne,who was also the creator of the Cesar Award for cinema .
The Inspector Maigret mysteries were written by Georges Simeon.
Louis Maigret(or Meigret)was the author of the Trette de la Grammaire francaise,which was published in 1550.This was the first grammatical description of the French language .
Joe Louis had been down on his luck in his last years and died in poverty in 1981. His funeral was paid for by his most famous rival (and later friend), German boxer Max Schmeling, whom Louis had defeated in 1938 much to Hitler’s chagrin.
A giant pair of sculpted fists stands outside Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, named after the great boxer, who grew up in the city.
Charles Lindbergh took off from Roosevelt Field, now closed and where a plaque commemorates the event.
In Sunset Boulevard Norma Desmond recalls that the last time she saw Cecil B. DeMille she was dancing on a table; he recalls the occasion as a party to celebrate Lindbergh’s landing.
When he was young, Bishop Desmond Tutu wanted to become a doctor but his family could not afford the schooling.
“Doctor Syntax” is a 2002 album by Edwyn Collins.The album cover is a painting of Russian Romantic writer and poet Mikhail Lermontov.
Phil Collins has a deep interest in the Alamo and is a connoisseur of Alamo collectibles. He’s also written a book: The Alamo and Beyond: A Collector’s Journey.
Alamo Rent a Car is headquartered in Clayton, MO. It was given the name not because of its location, but because it wanted to be listed first among car renatl companies in the telephone book.